Fifteenth Sunday OT
Year C
13th July 2025
INTRODUCTION
Good morning/evening. My name is ………. and I would like to wish you a warm welcome to our Mass at Holy Spirit Church, Kurri Kurri/ St Joseph’s, Cessnock/ St Francis Xavier’s Abermain/ St Michael’s, Wollombi/
The priest celebrating with us today is Father James and Father Solomon and assisting him is Deacon Viane.
Today we read a foundational Christian message in the parable of the Good Samaritan. It is a challenging reading reminding us that, like the love of God, the love we are to show each other should have no boundary. The heart of the law and the prophets, and all of God’s ways, are wrapped up in this teaching. The Apostleship of the Sea is not something of which we are often aware as the people concerned are seldom seen but let us be aware of them and their needs today.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And with your spirit.
Brethren (brothers and sisters), let us acknowledge our sins,
and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries.
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of good will.
We praise you,
we bless you,
we adore you,
we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.
Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world,
receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father,
have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
Let us pray.
O God, who show the light of your truth
to those who go astray,
so that they may return to the right path,
give all who for the faith they profess
are accounted Christians
the grace to reject whatever is contrary to the name of Christ
and to strive after all that does it honour.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Deuteronomy 30:10-14
A reading from the book of Deuteronomy
Let the instruction of the Lord God be near you.
Moses said to the people: ‘Obey the voice of the Lord your God, keeping those commandments and laws of his that are written in the Book of this Law, and you shall return to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.
‘For this Law that I enjoin on you today is not beyond your strength or beyond your reach. It is not in heaven, so that you need to wonder, “Who will go up to heaven for us and bring it down to us, so that we may hear it and keep it?” Nor is it beyond the seas, so that you need to wonder, “Who will cross the seas for us and bring it back to us, so that we may hear it and keep it?” No, the Word is very near to you, it is in your mouth and in your heart for your observance.’
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Ps 8:4-9
Ps 68:14. 17. 30-31. 33-34. 36-37. R. see v.33
(R.) Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
1. This is my prayer to you,
my prayer for your favour.
In your great love, answer me, O God,
with your help that never fails:
Lord, answer, for your love is kind;
in your compassion, turn towards me. (R.)
2. As for me in my poverty and pain
let your help, O God, lift me up.
I will praise God’s name with a song;
I will glorify him with thanksgiving. (R.)
3. The poor when they see it will be glad
and God-seeking hearts will revive;
for the Lord listens to the needy
and does not spurn his servants in their chains. (R.)
4. For God will bring help to Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah.
The sons of his servants shall inherit it;
those who love his name shall dwell there. (R.)
Colossians 1:15-20
A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Colossians
All things were created through him and for him.
Christ Jesus is the image of the unseen God
and the first-born of all creation,
for in him were created
all things in heaven and on earth:
everything visible and everything invisible,
Thrones, Dominations, Sovereignties, Powers –
all things were created through him and for him.
Before anything was created, he existed,
and he holds all things in unity.
Now the Church is his body,
he is its head.
As he is the Beginning,
he was first to be born from the dead,
so that he should be first in every way;
because God wanted all perfection
to be found in him
and all things to be reconciled through him and for him,
everything in heaven and everything on earth,
when he made peace
by his death on the cross.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
See John 6:63. 68
Alleluia, alleluia!
Your words, Lord, are spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.
Alleluia!
Luke 10:25-37
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
Who is my neighbour?
There was a lawyer who, to disconcert Jesus, stood up and said to him, ‘Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the Law? What do you read there?’ He replied, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself.’ ‘You have answered right,’ said Jesus, ‘do this and life is yours.’
But the man was anxious to justify himself and said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbour?’ Jesus replied, ‘A man was once on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of brigands; they took all he had, beat him and then made off, leaving him half dead. Now a priest happened to be travelling down the same road, but when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. In the same way a Levite who came to the place saw him, and passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan traveller who came upon him was moved with compassion when he saw him. He went up and bandaged his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them. He then lifted him on to his own mount, carried him to the inn and looked after him. Next day, he took out two denarii and handed them to the innkeeper. “Look after him,” he said, “and on my way back I will make good any extra expense you have.” Which of these three, do you think, proved himself a neighbour to the man who fell into the brigands’ hands?’ ‘The one who took pity on him,’ he replied. Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do the same yourself.’
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven,
At the words that follow, up to and including ‘and became man’, all bow.
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Presider: Dear friends, let us bring our intentions before the Lord, who we trust in love.
We pray that our Holy Father Pope Leo will continue to show the love of God through his actions towards the poor and needy. (pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray that the destitute and isolated will not be neglected or passed by.
(pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray that organisations that work for the good of the poor will find support and encouragement. (pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray that our parish community that it will be protected and that we will treat our neighbours with care, respect and kindness.
(pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray the sick and housebound will find relief from their suffering, especially those listed in our bulletin and those we hold dear.
(pause) Lord hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
We pray for the recently deceased ……. and for those whose anniversaries occur around this time including ….. that they will live for ever in the divine compassion of Christ,. (pause) Lord, hear us:
All: Lord, hear our prayer.
Presider: Loving God, your Son teaches us to love our neighbour. Hear our prayers and help us to live in kindness and love as we serve each other in your name. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters),
may be acceptable to God,
the almighty Father.
May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands
for the praise and glory of his name,
for our good,
and the good of all his holy Church.
Look upon the offerings of the Church, O Lord,
as she makes her prayer to you,
and grant that, when consumed by those who believe,
they may bring ever greater holiness.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
52. The following Preface is said on Sundays in Ordinary Time.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,
through Christ our Lord.
For through his Paschal Mystery,
he accomplished the marvellous deed,
by which he has freed us from the yoke of sin and death,
summoning us to the glory of being now called
a chosen race, a royal priesthood,
a holy nation, a people for your own possession,
to proclaim everywhere your mighty works,
for you have called us out of darkness
into your own wonderful light.
And so, with Angels and Archangels,
with Thrones and Dominions,
and with all the hosts and Powers of heaven,
we sing the hymn of your glory,
as without end we acclaim:
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
Save us, Saviour of the world,
For by your cross and resurrection you have set us free.
Let us pray.
Having consumed these gifts, we pray, O Lord,
that, by our participation in this mystery,
its saving effects upon us may grow.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Go forth, the Mass is ended.
Thanks be to God.
© The scriptural quotations are taken from the Jerusalem Bible, published and copyright 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton Longman and Todd Ltd and Doubleday & Co Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. The English translation of the Psalm Responses, the Alleluia and Gospel Verses, and the Lenten Gospel Acclamations, and the Titles, Summaries, and Conclusion of the Readings, from the Lectionary for Mass © 1997, 1981, 1968, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. The prayers are from the English Translation of the Roman Missal © 2010 International Committee on English in the Liturgy Inc. (ICEL). All rights reserved.